Evacuation orders are in place for the town of Paradise, home to around 26,000 people, as well as Magalia, Concow, Butte Creek Canyon and Butte Valley areas.

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Capt John Gaddie told the Associated Press that some residents in Paradise had been trapped by the fire. Emergency crews were working to help people evacuate there, he said.

At least one nursing home and hospital were evacuated and several homes were on fire, according to the Sacramento Bee, and the region is covered with thick, dark smoke.

Thousands are also without power in the region, which is just north of Sacramento.

Image copyrightCal Fire/Twitter

Image caption
Firefighters have had to rescue some residents who fled on foot

One Paradise resident who fled the encroaching blaze told the Bee: “It was so hot. You could feel it.”

Others described watching flames consume their property as they evacuated.

An elementary school in the region was also forced to evacuate students after the fire came within half a mile of the campus, according to CNN.

Related Articles

[ad_1] Image copyright AFP Image caption Trips across the Channel won’t be the same for Britons and EU citizens The UK government’s Brexit withdrawal deal offers temporary guarantees for Britons living elsewhere in the EU and EU citizens in the UK. But it still requires approval by the UK Parliament and European Parliament to become […]

[ad_1] Media playback is unsupported on your device Media captionJamal Khashoggi: What we know about the journalist’s disappearance and death Turkey says it has shared recordings related to the murder of the journalist and writer Jamal Khashoggi with the US, the UK, Saudi Arabia and others. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeated his assertion that […]